Sun Quan didn't lie, he was really poor and crazy now. If he hadn't been poor and crazy, he wouldn't be so angry with Lu Xun and Pan Jun's suggestions.
Wuling was taken away by Wei Ba. Sun Quan felt that he had lost face. The actual loss was not big. The only ones that could really make some money were Linyuan and several nearby counties. The Chenyang area was basically self-sufficient. As for those in the mountains Barbarians, he didn't expect to squeeze any money out of them, but he only expected to recruit a few soldiers to make up for last year's losses.
The loss of Jiaozhou really hurt his vitality. For so many years, Sun Quan had deliberately tried to control Jiaozhou because Jiaozhou was one of the only financial resources that he could fully control, or it was the only financial resource. There was no one. Jiaozhou was Wei Ba took away the wealth that he could use freely. If he wanted to make a difference, he could only rely on the Jiangdong family.
These days, land means everything. Without land, there is no wealth. Without wealth, how can we support an army?
What can I do for free?
In the battle at Xiangyang, he was deceived by the Shu Han people. As a result, Xiangyang was not taken, and he lost tens of thousands of soldiers, and even one of his sons died. He wanted to take revenge, but he was tricked by Zhuge Liang and Wei Ba, both old and young, until his nose was black and his eyes were swollen. , Zhuge Liang only sent Wei Ba alone, and he turned Wuling upside down. Now he has turned into Benjiali and even robbed his small treasury in Jiaozhou.
Doesn’t this allow people to live?
Sun Quan only has two wishes now: one is to get some money, and the other is to kill Wei Ba.
He thought a lot about ways to make money. The north was blocked by Wei and the west by Shu. He could have developed southward, but now Jiaozhou seemed unreliable again. He could only turn his attention to Liaodong and overseas. , it is said that there are Yizhou and Danzhou overseas. There are small barbarian countries above. If you can conquer those places, you can not only plunder the people as soldiers, but also increase your wealth. However, the sea is dangerous and dangerous, and many ministers disagree or even firmly oppose it. This made Sun Quan a little hesitant to act hastily. If Zhang Fen could modify the warships like Wei Ba did and reduce the danger of going to sea, he might be able to convince those ministers to implement the strategy of going to sea to conquer and relieve the treasury that was almost cramped.
In addition to getting more money, Zhang Fen can also count on another wish.
Sun Quan has been reflecting on this for a while. He is wondering why Wei Ba can suddenly rise up and one person can make him miserable. After thinking about it, he feels that Wei Ba has two strengths that ordinary people cannot match. It was Wei Ba who had soldiers. The soldiers of the Wei family were capable, good at raids, and even better at fighting in the mountains. Therefore, Wei Ba was at home in the mountains, making Lu Dai and others lose weight and lose weight. First, Wei Ba was proficient in machinery. Technology. By making various machines, he accomplished things that many people thought were impossible. For example, in the Battle of Xiangyang, he started from a single building ship because he had the technology to transform warships. By defeating the Wei Navy, Miracle General suggestion to raise a navy. Another example is in Chenyang, he used his appalling siege engines to burn Chenyang, and actually captured Chenyang overnight. Another example is in Yanguan. He also used his machinery Technology created a mobile bamboo city and quickly conquered the critical barrier.
Apart from this, Sun Quan felt that Wei Ba had nothing special about him. Among these two specialties, the latter undoubtedly played the greatest role. No matter how strong the soldiers were, they could not defeat a hundred, and in a big battle, , a limited number of soldiers can play a very limited role. The latter is different, Wei Ba's mechanical technology can create miracles one after another.
Sun Quan once wanted to lure Wei Ba to the Kingdom of Wu, and it was precisely because he took a fancy to Wei Ba's mechanical technology. Although the role of Wei Ba's mechanical technology at that time was far from as brilliant as it is now, it was just because of his advantages in warship modification.
That attracted Sun Quan's interest.
If Sun Quan's thoughts were a little vague at first, now after being reminded by Sun Luban, Sun Quan's ideas suddenly became clear.
He found a way to deal with Wei Ba.
As long as Wei Ba's mechanical technology can be restrained, it is possible to defeat Wei Ba and greatly improve the Wu army's combat effectiveness.
Sun Quan was not a Confucian scholar, he did not discriminate against technology, he just did not pay enough attention to technology.
Zhang Fen is a good candidate. When he was initially recommended, it was because he built a cart for sieges. He was only twenty years old at the time, as old as Wei Ba now. However, because his uncle Zhang Zhao was not
Agreed, he had to be forced to study, so he was not reused. Thinking of this, Sun Quan couldn't help but feel a little more resentful towards Zhang Zhao.
Sun Quan immediately ordered Zhang Fen to be rushed to Xiling, put under the command of Bu Zhao, and converted into a large vehicle to attack the city. Once the experiment was successful, he was ready to send troops to regain Linyuan. Since Chenyang was occupied by Lu Xun, there was no reason to let Zhao Tong occupy Linyuan.
Yuan. It would be great if he could capture Zhao Tong alive. As for the battle in Linhe, Sun Quan still had confidence in Lu Xun. He believed that Wei Ba was just showing off his glory in the mountains and would fight in open areas.
He is definitely not Lu Xun's opponent, at least he cannot achieve such brilliant achievements. In fact, during the battle of Chenyang, if Lu Xun had not been injured first and Fei Yi caused trouble, Wei Ba might not have had the chance to surprise Chenyang and burn it down.
With enough food and grass, Lu Xun still had a chance to defeat Wei Ba.
Shortly after Sun Quan's order was issued, Fei Yi rushed to Wuchang. Sun Quan listened to his intention and rejected the suggestion of negotiation. He agreed with Lu Xun's view. Now Wei Ba has no sincerity in negotiating and negotiation is meaningless. It is better to fight first.
Let’s talk about it one more time.
Fei Yi was helpless. He didn't know that Sun Quan was looking for a way to restrain Wei Ba, but he knew very well that Sun Quan and his ministers obviously realized that the next war was an opportunity for them to make a comeback. If Wei Ba could not defeat Lu Xun, all previous victories would be lost.
All may come to nothing.
Fei Yi once again sent an urgent message to Zhuge Liang, hoping that he would give the necessary attention to the Jiaozhou battlefield while he was busy on the Guanzhong battlefield.
Time passed quietly in the exchange of orders from the three parties. When the autumn harvest was all over and a large number of Wei State servants carried bags of newly harvested wheat on their shoulders, carts and boats, and sent them to the front line, everyone in the world
The situation quickly became tense.
At the end of September, His Majesty the Emperor of the State of Wei entered Wancheng, and once again sent an envoy to reiterate the alliance with Sun Quan, King of Wu. He presented two good horses, five precious swords, and numerous gifts. He also proposed once again that he and the State of Wu jointly send troops to attack Shu, using the Yangtze River as a base.
Sun Quan sent someone to thank Cao Rui. However, he declined Cao Rui's suggestion of jointly sending troops to attack Shu. He said that he was currently competing with Shu Han for Jiaozhou and Jingzhou and had no time to attack Yizhou. As long as he could free his hands, he sent troops to respond to Cao Rui.
.
Cao Rui also knew what kind of character Sun Quan was, and even more clearly knew what Sun Quan had been done to by Wei Ba, and it was impossible for him to send troops to attack Shu. Xia Houxuan's report had long been sent to his desk. Knowing that Wei Ba was unwilling to go to Guanzhong, Cao Rui
He didn't even want to go back to Chengdu. He was more or less relieved.
After Cao Rui arrived at Wancheng, General Sima Yi officially led his troops to the expedition. Because Wei Ba took the initiative to abandon Wuguan during the Battle of Guanzhong and withdrew his line to Shangluo. After that, he never had the chance to recapture Wuguan, so Sima Yi marched straight in, and the army continued
Driving to the foot of Shangluo City, he did not rush to attack the city. Instead, he ordered the craftsmen in the transport camp to look at the siege equipment in large quantities. He was determined to capture Shangluo and enter Guanzhong.
Sima Yi was like this, and General Cao Zhen was no exception. Although he was seriously ill and could not come to the front line to command in person, he sent Pingxi General Xia Houba to the front line. Working with him was Chen Tai, the servant. Ma Jun, the most outstanding craftsman in the Wei State, was also
Before Tongguan, under his command, the Wei army went up the mountain to cut trees and manufactured a large number of siege equipment. Both in quantity and quality, they were comparable to the equipment Wei Ba had prepared for Tongguan. It also showed to Wei Yan in the city.
He frowned, wishing he could have sent someone to assassinate or kidnap Ma Jun.
Unlike the Wei army in front of Shangluo and Tongguan, which was preparing to storm the city, Beidi County's brave cavalry general Qin Lang and Fuyi general Tian Yu led 30,000 cavalry to wander in Beidi County and delayed entering the position. Zhao Yun, who was stationed in Fuping, did not dare to
Careless. A large number of scouts were sent to monitor the movements of the Wei army at any time. However, the Wei army did not relax. The main forces of the two sides had not yet come into contact, and the scouts had already started a fierce fight.
However, things were quiet in Longxi. In mid-October, Zhang He, the cavalry general who conquered the west, led 10,000 fine cavalry and lost his trace. Hao Zhao, the general who suppressed the west, led 5,000 troops to guard Ji County, and Wei Ping, the general who wanted to suppress the captives, led 5,000 troops to guard Yuzhong.
Zhang He's tactics are very obvious, which is to wait for the Shu army to attack the city, while his 10,000 cavalry are constantly moving, preventing the Shu army from going all out. Once the Shu army shows a flaw, he will stab it like a sharp knife.
enter.
"Did Zhang He go to the North?" Zhuge Liang stood in front of the huge map and asked in a deep voice.
"It's completely possible." Fengyi General Jiang Wei stood aside, looking at the knife-like wrinkles on Zhuge Liang's forehead and the white hair on his temples, and secretly sighed, the prime minister is really old.
The gray hair on his face has increased a lot. "However, what I am more worried about is that Qin Lang and Tian Yu will attack Jingyang. They have traveled thousands of miles and the cavalry can arrive in three to five days. If they join forces and 40,000 cavalry enter Guanzhong,
The situation is unimaginable.”
"Without cavalry, we are very passive." Zhuge Liang sighed: "However, if they really come to Jingyang, it is not a bad thing. If they defeat these 40,000 infantry cavalry, we will have won half the battle. Bo Yue, once we take over
Can the Tiger Step Camp be of great use in the war?"
"Prime Minister, please rest assured." Jiang Weigong said respectfully: "Prime Minister, I have given you an order. We must take the lead and stay in position."
Zhuge Liang stroked his beard gently and suddenly became distracted. After a while, he came back to his senses, looked at Jiang Wei who was a little confused and said: "Your words remind me of Wei Ba. Wei Ba once said that people are more important than positions.
Important. When necessary, you can trade space for time. As long as you need people, there will always be a time to make a comeback. If the people die, it will be useless even if you get the city. Therefore, compared to people in the position, he prefers the absence of the position.
People are still there.”
Jiang Wei kept a straight face and said nothing, but Huo Yi couldn't help laughing. Jiang Wei glanced at him, but Huo Yi didn't take it seriously, as if he hadn't seen him.
"What does the Prime Minister mean?" Jiang Wei asked cautiously.
"It depends on the situation. How can we generalize?" Zhuge Liang said lightly: "Wei Ba has a wild nature and has no trace of his troops, so he was sent to Wuling. He was able to beat Sun Quan to a pulp. But when he was guarding Chang'an, he
That's not the case. He also defended Tongguan and Shangluo and refused to take a step back. It can be seen that he knows Qi Zheng, but he prefers to use Qi."
His eyes swept across the faces of Huo Yi and Jiang Wei. "Bo Yue, Shaoxian, you have to work hard. Shaoxian is smart and thoughtful, different from Wei Ba, and each is good at it. Boyue, you have both.
Zheng, combining the strengths of both, is not as good as Huo Yi, and is not as good as Wei Ba. If you can put your mind to it, you can become a famous general. If you don't think about making progress, you will end up just being a middle-aged man."
"Thank you, Prime Minister, for your advice." Jiang Wei and Huo Yi both bowed to express their thanks.